Dawn Fraser

Dawn Fraser

Dawn Fraser was born on the 4th of September, 1937 in Sydney, NSW. Dawn began swimming at a young age for a fitness activity and to cope with severe asthma. As she grew older and swam more and more, she eventually discovered she was allergic to chlorine, but the fact that she was, didn't stop her or slow her down one bit. She kept on swimming for her local swimming club. She was watched by Coach Harry Gallagher, and he eventually offered to coach her without charging any money because her parents couldn't afford private training.

Dawn swam in times of pressure, for example, between the Olympic Games in Rome and the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Dawn's father died of Cancer and her mother died in a car accident in which Dawn was injured.

Even though Dawn had setbacks, it didn't stop her from pushing forward and becoming one of the most well known names in the sporting industry. Dawn held 39 world records throughout her career, won 8 Olympic medals, 6 commonwealth games gold medals and she became the first woman to swim 100 meters freestyle in less than one minute. In 1973 Dawn retired and became a publican in Bal main and from 1988 she represented Bal main as an independent member of the NSW parliament. Dawn now coaches young swimmers.

Dawn Fraser is an inspiration to me because, despite her family tragedies and what she has been through, she kept going and didn't give up.